The preliminary election results show 176 seats for the opposition and 173 for the Tidö parties. If that holds, Baudin expects two things from Kristersson:
Firstly, that he calls Magdalena Andersson and admits defeat. And secondly, that he submits his resignation as the country's Prime Minister.
Ulf Kristersson is expected to announce whether he will resign or not when the final tally is complete.
M's party secretary Karin Enström comments on Baudin's statement in an email:
"We do not intend to pre-empt the Election Authority's vote count. Out of respect for the voters, we would have liked that attitude from several parties," Enström writes.
“Hold on tight”
If the Moderate Party leader announces his resignation, the sitting Speaker can immediately begin the process and hold a round of talks with the party leaders.
However, if Kristersson does not choose to resign, there will be a mandatory vote on the prime minister when the Riksdag opens. This could take place no earlier than September 29th.
Tobias Baudin says that Ulf Kristersson went into the election with a clear government alternative.
If this is the election result, the Swedish people have rejected his alternative and voted no to it, he says.
It is obvious that he is now instead trying to cling on.
According to Baudin, Magdalena Andersson called Kristersson after the last election in 2022 when the Wednesday votes were counted.
S has not yet initiated any negotiations with the other parties in the red-green bloc.
I have mainly had text message contact with the party secretaries and had good conversations, but we are not at a point where we are talking about negotiations yet, says Baudin.
“Every vote must count”
Only when the election results are clear can the talks turn into negotiations, he says.
As this has developed, the focus will be on the other three opposition parties, says Baudin.
When S can present a government, he cannot say.
We must first count every vote so we have this election result.
To be elected Prime Minister, less than half of the members of the Riksdag must vote no. Abstentions are considered to mean that the candidate is accepted, or tolerated.
